There are a number of situations when it may be desirable to reduce the footprint of a bicycle, or bike. These include when maneuvering or storing their bike in an apartment, condominium, house or garage, when placing them in bike racks and when pushing their bike on sidewalks. There have been a number of approaches to allow cyclists to reduce the footprint of their bicycle, including folding bicycles.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,880,848, issued Apr. 19, 2005 to Lui and entitled “FOLDABLE BICYCLE”, discloses a folding bicycle. The foldable bicycle has a frame, a front fork, a front wheel, a stem, a handlebar, a handlebar positioning device, a seat post, a seat, a rear fork, a rear wheel, a drive assembly, a shock absorber and a rear fork positioning device. The handlebar positioning device is mounted between the front fork and the stem such that the stem can be folded toward the frame. The rear fork positioning device is mounted between the shock absorber and the rear fork so that the rear fork can be folded toward the frame. Accordingly, the bicycle can be folded so as to reduce the overall perimeter dimensions of the bicycle for storing or transporting the bicycle.
The handlebar positioning device comprises a bracket, a locking pin, a locking neck and a handlebar quick-release device. The bracket is attached to the top of the front fork and holds the front fork in the head tube. A front longitudinal protrusion and a rear longitudinal protrusion are also provided, where the front longitudinal protrusion has a longitudinal slot and two wings. The wings are formed on opposite sides of the longitudinal slot and extend away from the frame. The locking pin is mounted in the longitudinal slot between the wings and is capable of providing a clamping force to release or maintain the handle bar stem in a folded or in use configuration relative to the bicycle frame.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,623,023, issued Sep. 23, 2003 to Niitsu et al. and entitled “BICYCLE AND BICYCLE FOLDING METHOD”, discloses a bicycle and a bicycle folding method, which allow a rider to easily and securely fold and unfold the bicycle. The bicycle has a front wheel and a rear wheel; a saddle on which a rider rides; a pair of pedals to which the rider imparts a drive force; a first frame for holding the front wheel in a rotative manner; a handle for changing the direction of the front wheel; a second frame for holding the rear wheel in a rotative manner; and a linking portion for linking a linking member of the first frame with a linking member of the second frame, wherein the first frame and the second frame may be brought close to each other by the rider's lifting the linking portion with the front wheel and the rear wheel kept in contact with the ground, thereby folding-up the bicycle with the front wheel and the rear wheel overlapping each other so as to reduce the overall perimeter dimensions of the bicycle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,751, issued Jun. 29, 1993 to Chen and entitled “FOLDABLE BICYCLE FRAME”, discloses a foldable bicycle frame that comprises a front triangular portion and a rear triangular portion. The former includes a top tube, a down tube, a head tube and a seat tube while the latter contains a bottom bracket tube, a seat stay, a chain stay and a seat tube. Both front and rear triangular portions are hinged by means of upper and lower coupling pieces arranged to pivot such that the bicycle frame can be so as to reduce the overall perimeter dimensions thereof. Upon being unfolded, both front and rear triangular portions are held securely by virtue of a seat stay which extends beyond the seat tube to be fastened securely to the top tube. In some embodiments, the front and rear triangular portions may be also held securely by way of the seat post being inserted into the connection tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,490, issued Mar. 30, 1999 to Dittmar and entitled “ADJUSTABLE HANDLEBAR STEM USING A LOCKING PIN SYSTEM”, is directed specifically to an apparatus for adjusting the vertical and horizontal position of a handlebar on a bicycle or the like. It has a base member, an upper link, a lower link, and a intermediate member forming a parallelogram type link. A protrusion formed on the lower link extends into and slidably contacts a tracking slot formed in the upper link. A locking means for fixing the upper and lower links has a locking pin disposed in a bore formed in the upper link and extending through one of a plurality of holes formed in the protrusion of the lower link. The locking pin defines a locked position when extending into one of the plurality of holes and an unlocked position when released. The pin is biased in the locked position. A release lever is disposed on the upper link having an operating portion for grasping by a rider and a locking pin portion for engaging the locking pin.
United States Patent Application Publication No. 20130319169, published Dec. 5, 2013 to Savard and entitled “BICYCLE STEM HAVING CONTROLLED RELEASE OF THE STEERABILITY THEREOF”, discloses a stem for a bicycle handlebar having controlled release of the steerability thereof, includes a body intended for receiving a stem arm which in turn receives a handlebar, the stem also including a headset, elements for attaching the stem to the fork of a bicycle including a head tube and a locking/unlocking element, wherein the locking/unlocking element includes at least one key placed in a cavity arranged in the headset, a resilient element for returning the at least one key towards the outside of the cavity, holes arranged in the stem body through which the keys pass, a ring suitable for retracting the at least one key through the holes by a rotation or translation movement, respectively. The mounting also provides a headset arrangement. The objective of this technology is to reduce the space needed to store a bike and to protect the bike from theft. The handlebars can be either left loose in relation to the wheel or can be locked in each of the coplanar or perpendicular positions. Only the bicycle stem is rotatable relative the forks of the bicycle, hence the footprint of the bicycle is as wide as the stem is long when the stem is folded for storage.
United States Patent Application Publication No. 20120125145, published May 24, 2012 to VanderVeen and entitled “PIVOTABLE HANDLEBAR FOR LOCKING AND EFFICIENT STORAGE OF A BICYCLE”, discloses a pivotable handlebar stem apparatus comprised of a clamp body, a cam lock, and a positioning component. The clamp body fits around a handlebar stem or portion of the handlebars of a bicycle. When the cam lock is unlocked and the positioning component is disengaged, the handlebars may be rotated from a riding position to a parked position for convenient storage, transport and parking. The apparatus is configured to allow the handlebars to swing from a horizontal position to a vertical position in a vertical plane; hence the length of the bicycle remains the same, while the width is reduced.
United States Patent Application Publication No. 20060096408, published May 11, 2006 to Liao and entitled “BICYCLE STEM HAVING A POSITIONING MECHANISM FOR RE-POSITIONING A HANDLE”, discloses a bicycle stem having a positioning mechanism for re-positioning a handle that comprises a vertical tube; an adaptor having a bore and an extension, wherein the bore receives therein the vertical tube so that the adaptor can rotate about the vertical tube; a lateral tube with a front end having a clamp for locking the handle, and a rear end pivotally connected to the extension of the adaptor; and a positioning mechanism comprising a rod for fixing the adaptor on the vertical tube as the adaptor is rotated to the required position about the vertical tube. The described mechanism relies on a quick release and a locking rod that is engaged in an aperture when the stem is locked in the riding position. In the storage position, the locking rod is disengaged and the quick release is again closed to hold the stem in the storage position. Accordingly, the stem body is normal to the remainder of the bicycle when the handlebars are in the storage position, hence the footprint of the bicycle is as wide as the stem is long.
European Patent Application No. EP1917179, published May 7, 2008 to Hudson and entitled “A BICYCLE HAVING A FOLDABLE HANDLEBAR STEM”, discloses a bicycle having a stem connecting handlebars to a steering column, the stem, when actuated by a lever moves handlebars and holds them in a storage position. The stem has a handle portion and a steering portion. The steering portion is coupled to the front fork such that it extends transverse to the steering axis to a first end to which the handle portion is coupled. The handle portion couples the handlebar to the steering portion. The handle portion of the stem is movable relative to the steering portion between a steering position and a storage position. The lever is coupled to means for actuating the handle portion, said means can comprise a push/pull rod which can be coupled to the lever by an over center mechanism. The handlebars are not retained in a coplanar position with the bicycle frame or the front wheel when in the storage position.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 8,550,484, issued Oct. 8, 2013 to Draper and entitled “ADJUSTABLE BICYCLE HANDLE BAR ADAPTER AND ASSOCIATED METHOD”, discloses an adjustable bicycle handle bar adapter and associated method. A bicycle headstock assembly may include a lower member adapted to be attached to a steering rod of the bicycle, and an upper member adjustably connected to the lower member. A pivot joint may be formed at a connection of the lower and upper members respectively. A handle bar clamp may be connected to the upper member and extending away therefrom. A primary fastener may pass through a first location of the pivot joint while an auxiliary fastener may pass through a second location of the pivot joint respectively. In this way, the primary and auxiliary fasteners may cooperate to permit the upper member to selectively pivot and lock at alternate positions relative to the lower member. Furthermore, the handle bar clamp may be rotatable in the upper member such that the handlebars may rotated in a vertical plane for storage, similar to that disclosed in United States Patent Application Publication No. 20120125145, noted above.
This background information is provided to reveal information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance. No admission is necessarily intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art.